The “Myth” of Socialization
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Category Archives: Homeschooling
Socialization. Seriously?
But What About Socialization?
I took another question from a parent today who is afraid that home schooled children are not going to know how to get along in the “real world.”
I gotta say, I’m amazed that the “socialization” question ever comes up anymore when it comes to homeschooling. It’s curious to me that the tables are not turned the other way. I’m wondering why we’re not asking the schools to defend the “socialization” that’s happening on playgrounds, on school busses and in the hallways of our local schools.
That’s what we should be talking about.
Sample Daily Checklist
I like to make individual checklists of everyday assignments for our kids. I plan six months at a time if I can. It takes me two days to make these checklists for each of our kids. I’ve attached a page from last year.
Notice that I have a special time set aside for each child to go over their assignments. 🙂 The checklist is meant to help them know what is expected of them each week. And no. We don’t always get it all done. But we try. 😀
{A New Year of Homeschooling is Here}
{Thoughts On a New Year of Homeschooling}
I’m cleaning/organizing the schoolroom today. We don’t start school around here until after Labor Day—but I must confess I have not even THOUGHT about what we are doing this year, even after all my well intentioned plans to do school through the summer. The fact is, I needed the break and so did the kids. So… we took a break!
It’s easy to become anxious about all that is before me as I make lists and write out what needs to be done by subject and skill level. But as I reflect on my two oldest daughter’s homeschool years I am reminded that the BEST memories and the best “fruit” from their homeschool years really came from hours of reading aloud on the couch. The good stuff, the best fruit, was born from good conversation and meaningful discussions about everything from history and science to politics and current events. It came from studying the Bible together and asking questions together.
The best fruit never came from a text book.
As you begin a new school year, keep in mind the best thing you will do with your children this year is to show them by example what it means to love them through the ups and downs of everyday life.
Love them when they don’t get long division again (even though you’ve explained it a million times).
Love them through hormonal outbursts 🙂 …yours AND theirs.
Love them enough to consistently correct not only their schoolwork but their attitudes and actions.
Love them enough to say “I’m sorry” and to extend forgiveness as often as it is required.
Love them enough to put your husband first. <3
Love them enough to stop "school" and address a bigger issue—because you realize that a child who knows Latin but can't be kind or respectful is really worse off than a kind, respectful child who only speaks English. 🙂
Love them by demonstrating the character traits you want them to learn. After all, children learn by example first.
What are you hoping to harvest at the end of your homeschool years? Plant with the harvest in mind.
Something to ponder as you plan the new school year
As you think about a new school year, be sure that the first thing you do is assess where your children are in terms of developing their character.Are we teaching our children to be humble and kind? Are we modeling what it means to ask for forgiveness?To have respect for authority?A bratty, disobedient child who knows his Presidents and speaks Latin is not a blessing to his parents or anyone else.
Character first.
Curriculum will follow.
Five Tips for Choosing Curriculum
So often we get “hung up” where curriculum in concerned: it becomes the main thing and we lean into IT instead of into the Lord.
So with that said, here are some of my favorite tips for choosing curriculum!
Remember, moms, HIS yoke is easy and HIS burden is light.
Homeschooling should be a joy. It should not run you over and leave you for dead. 🙂
If you’re already overwhelmed by the curriculum or program you chose, it may be time to prayerfully consider another way. ♥
Be encouraged! There’s No Such Thing … As Super Mom
Last week, I spoke for NCHE (North Carolinians for Home Education) at their awesome conference in Winston-Salem. I loved being able to talk with many of the 6000+ attendees on everything from multi-level teaching to marriage. Moms, and especially homeschool moms really float my boat. They are my people, if you know what I mean. 🙂 I get being a mom. Most of the women I spoke to had similar questions and the biggest one is usually “Am I doing enough?”
We do so much, don’t we? Or at least we try to do so much. Ballet, soccer, music lessons, co-op, church, birthday parties. Just looking at a potential list of all the things I “could” be doing but am not makes me feel like a failure sometimes.
Man, we’re hard on ourselves! I used to ask myself if I was doing enough a lot when our kids were all little, but I must admit, it’s lessening with each passing year. Now that two of our daughters are grown, I find myself emotionally tied to less “super” things … and more sappy ones. Turns out that the best memories we all share are pretty simple. Like reading together. Nothing “super” about that… or is there? 🙂
One of the reasons I love speaking to moms is because it provides me with an opportunity to “be real” about my own life—flaws and all. You see, there’s no such thing as a mom who has it all together. The mom who is SUPER academic will often wonder why she can’t be more laid back like her unschooling friend. And the mom who is SUPER organized may secretly wish she could be more laid back. Some moms are SUPER at socializing while others are SUPER at crockpot dinners. We’ve all got our strengths and weaknesses. And that’s okay. I think the key to avoiding Super Mom Syndrome is just to keep being real with each other.
You see I’ve come to believe that the best encouragement comes from ordinary moms being … well … ordinary. It’s not the “Super Moms” that encourage me. It’s the moms who share the same struggles I do but who remain willing to try again tomorrow. The mom who can say “Yeah, I thought about quitting homeschooling last week too!” … and then didn’t quit because she was reminded of the why rather just the oh-so-daily tasks of homeschooling.
The mom who falls down, and then talks about how God met her where she was at—and kept at it—shows us that His strength really is made perfect in weakness.
That’s the good stuff.
At the end of the day, my kids won’t remember me as Super Mom. But I hope they remember that I loved them. That I asked for forgiveness when it was necessary. That I wasn’t embarrassed to put a frozen pizza in the oven even when company came over for dinner unannounced and that I taught them how to navigate the often rough waters of parenthood with a little flair all their own. I hope they learn how to listen for the Lord so that they take on His yoke and not someone else’s. His yoke is easy. His burden is light.
You don’t have to be Super Mom. Just have to Abide in Him. You can do all things through Christ.
